The Japanese black thrash duo Abigail have been churning out dark, evil albeit fun records for over 20 years now. So when I noticed that frontman Yasuyuki Suzuki is putting out a new record under his side project Barbatos this year, I couldn’t help but get excited. Unfortunately ‘Straight Metal War’ isn’t quite what I expected it to be. Losing the blackened toned for a straight forward old school heavy metal approach, Barbatos tries to celebrate everything old school. But between the sloppy guitar work and the ridiculous vocals, this record comes off as a total mess.

Before I kick this article off, I want to give a huge shout to Satan Spawn for allowing me to write this, as I know he was doing this series from his perspective. However, the question here is who would be better to talk about being a woman in the metal scene than exactly that? A woman in the metal scene!

Like with many segments of the scene, there are many misconceptions about being a female metal fan, as well as some frankly down right rude and misogynistic name-calling, opinions and stereotypes, that can piss most people off.

It doesn’t feel too long ago that I first started here and reviewed my first album – ‘The Waystone’ by Kaine. Now, I have been fortunate enough to be contacted by one of Kaine’s band members to review their new single, ‘Justice Injustice’. Being a fan of this band as it is, with their typical NWOBHM sound, I was eager to get a hold of this single, and boy did it not disappoint.

Music needn’t always be accessible and short entertainment pieces that engage the listener for a few minutes. Sometimes music can deliver a much deeper experience. When it comes to the realm of metal, bands like Inquisition, Dodheimsgard etc. are known to create music that leaves the listener in a deep meditative state. While Shroud of the Heretic doesn’t sound like the aforementioned bands, the music they create tends to have similar effects. The band’s second full length ‘Unorthodox Equilibrium’ sees the band continue in the direction they set on with their debut. The atmosphere heavy death metal sound seems to be amplified this time, with a sound that is much more suffocating and songs that are relatively longer.

When it comes to sick and twisted music, grindcore is my favourite go to genre. With all the grindcore that I listen to, I feel that most of them don’t have the stay power. When it comes to music that is always coked up on speed and drowned in anger, it is often the case that the tracks zip by, as the listener is still reeling from the impact. The reason I enjoy Nervous Impulse’s ‘Time to Panic’ is due to the fact that these Canadians know how to infect the listener’s mind with their music.The chaotic deathgrind that is on offer here has the staying power that most of the band’s peers lack.